match data from 2 columns and then return value from a 3rd one

hello,

1. i am comparing text
2. i have >100 countries, and with vlookup i have to type every single one, and this is what i want to escape (mb i need to refer to an array, or string, or no idea)
3. mb a solution could be sth with index, or match, i just tried it, copying some similar formula from www, but it didn't match the countries, and return the value respective for that country.

E.g. I have China in col1 (1st file), #employees 10 in col2 (1st file), and China in Col 1 in 2nd file. So, a formula should match China & China from both files, and return 10 as number of employees.

If you see a solution, pls. let me know,

thx a lot...